The Touchable Invisible project

Following a Western European model, the number of bronze reliefs for the blind, initiated and supported by the Rotary District 1911 (Hungary), increased to over twenty and was extended to the Transylvania region. The Touchable Invisible program was launched in 1998 under the leadership of Gyula NAGY (member of RC Budapest Budavár), and among the works produced within the program is a sculpture depicting the historical city-center of Odorheiu Secuiesc at a scale of 1:500.

The artwork was unveiled on 15th of october 2019 in celebration of the International White cane day, placed on the Townhall square, corner with Kossuth Lajos street. The bronze relief measuring 133×108 cm across, lying on the more-than-one-ton stone pedestal figures more than 600 buildings, covering an area of nearly 30 hectares of urban fabric.

Rotary Club Odorheiu Secuiesc donated the artwork to the city, whose real beneficiaries are blind and visually impaired people, city residents and tourists visiting the city. For the visually impaired, the bronze model provides invaluable information about the structure of the city, the proportions of the buildings, as well as the public spaces and the streets between them.

The object, which offers a high aesthetic value, can also be considered a teaching tool, because it is not usual to see children and even adults, exploring a similar relief with closed eyes and attentive fingers, which makes them more sensitive to the world of disabled people .

Last but not least, the experience of common ownership and the sense of responsibility it generates among the townspeople, who contemplate a miniature version of the historic center.

The bronze relief can bring them closer to recognizing and preserving the values around them for future generations.